Agreement allows Lorain high school project to go to bid

LORAIN – Lorain City Schools officials are “cautiously optimistic” about an agreement reached Friday which allows the new Lorain High School project to go out for bid.
“There was a conference call. The information that was shared at the conference call will be shared with the (Lorain City School Board) on Monday. We’re cautiously optimistic,” Superintendent Tom Tucker said. “Any of the parties can say, ‘No, we don’t like it.’ That’s why we’re cautiously optimistic.”
Lorain County Common Pleas Judge Mark A. Betleski allowed the three parties – North Central Ohio Bulding and Construction Trades Council, Ohio School Facilities Commission, and Lorain City Schools – to work out their differences without court involvement, he said.
The parties resolved issues and must file a signed final agreement within 30 days at the court, Betleski said.
Attorney Joseph Guarino III, Cleveland, represented the North Central Ohio Building and Construction Trades Council on the lawsuit filed July 11, 2013 in Lorain County Common Pleas Court.
The state enacted a resolution which prohibited a signed project labor agreement for the bidding process and construction of a new Lorain High School, Guarino said.
After the Ohio School Facilities Commission sent a letter to Lorain City Schools saying the project labor agreement would not be allowed, and the district informed union officials, the union group filed the lawsuit, Guarino said.
“This is an amicable solution that does benefit all three parties as well as residents of Lorain County,” he said. “We do appreciate the governor’s office working with us to come to an agreement on this problem.”
Guarino said he hopes the agreement can be finalized and signed within a week or two.
“The settlement agreement in principal will provide that the project will go out to bid with a project labor agreement in place,” Guarino said, adding the parties agreed to the original project labor agreement. “I would just stress that we would expect that the high school project will be going out to bid relatively soon after the settlement agreement is signed.”
Attorney Anthony B. Giardini and Jeff Hawks represented the school district on the conference call, Tucker said.